The finest surviving instance of early 17th-century Japanese castle architecture, Himeji-jo is composed of 83 buildings with highly developed defence systems and original protection devices that date from the early Shogun period. It is a wooden construction masterpiece, uniting utility with aesthetic appeal, both in its graceful appearance that is unified by the white plastered earthen walls as well as in the subtleness of the bonds between the building masses and the numerous roof layers. --WHMNet paraphrase from the description at WHC Site, where additional information is available.

Himeji Castle (Japanese: 姫路城; -jō) is a Japanese castle complex located in Himeji in Hyōgo Prefecture and comprising 82 wooden buildings. It is occasionally known as Hakurojō or Shirasagijō ("White Heron Castle") because of its brilliant white exterior. It was registered as the first Japanese National Cultural Treasure by UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Japanese National Cultural Treasure in December, 1993. Along with Matsumoto Castle and Kumamoto Castle, it is one of Japan's "Three Famous Castles", and is the most visited castle in Japan. --Wikipedia. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.